Enter a new Chief of Staff

There is a huge difference between the new Chief of Staff (COS) to the President, Brig.-Gen Jones Arogbofa (rtd) and his immediate predecessor, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe on their relationship with staff in the State House.

Oghiadomhe from Edo State, a former Deputy Governor of the state and elevated to the position of COS when President Goodluck Jonathan assumed office in 2010, was said to have resigned from the position on February 10, last year while Arogbofa from Ondo State, who has a military background, replaced him eight days after.

The Chief of Staff is the administrative head of the State House and has great powers and influence in the Presidency.

Oghiadomhe, during his tenure, constantly built a wall of about six security aides round himself whenever he appears in public in the State House.

While two stern-looking security aides will normally stay ahead of him, there were always two aides walking beside him while about two aides will trail behind him.

Either moving from his office to the President’s office or any office in the Villa, the security aides surrounded him as if the seat of power was not safe or was under threat of imminent invasion.

When on the move, Oghiadomhe’s aides clear the corridors before their principal gets to any particular point and sometimes shoved aside anybody on the corridor that may not directly be on their principal’s path.

Oghiadomhe’s phones were mostly permanently on his ears when walking on the corridors and many staff then thought that he was doing that because he did not want to acknowledge their greetings.

Even when the phones were not raised to his ears, he hardly responded to greetings from journalists when walking by the corridor to the council chamber.

His gaze was always fixed ahead of him with each step taken with the aura of power and authority that go with his office.

Some members of staff then that see Oghiadomhe from far coming in opposite direction most likely will make a detour to hide in any nearby office to allow him pass before proceeding to their destinations.

But since Arogbofa took over as the COS, hardly is he seen walking in the Presidential Villa with more than one security aide. He sometimes walks alone.

He walks freely and side-by-side with some members of staff on the corridor. The shoving and pushing by security aides of former COS is now a thing of the past, at least for now.

Not only does Arogbofa acknowledges greetings from staff on the corridor, he has severally stopped to crack jokes with some journalists who were on vigil by the corridor waiting to interview some high-profile politicians coming out from the President’s office,

Today, members of staff who used to hide in other offices, only stand aside on the corridor to allow Arogbofa pass by. They greet him with respect for his office, knowing that their greetings will be acknowledged.

Oghiadomhe and Arogbofa, no doubt, are worlds apart in their approaches to issues and interpersonal relationships during their different tenures as Chief of Staff to the President at the State House, Abuja.

Arogbofa’s style has earned him the admiration of members of staff and most journalists alike.

Some members of staff and journalists, who were skeptical about the new man and thought that he would revert to the Oghiadomhe’s style as soon as he settles down on the job, have long erased the thought from their minds.

With over a year in the saddle, they have not only found Arogbofa as a complete gentleman and someone who knows his onions, but they now love and admire him as he passes them by the corridor on a daily basis.

Aggressive monkeys in the Villa

Monkeys in the thick forest around the Presidential Villa are supposed to be friendly to an extent, but they are fast becoming aggressive.

No thanks to the dry season which has resulted in a sort of drought and made their means of livelihood scarce.

The trees in the forest, which were normally green with fruits, have become dry; with most shedding their leaves.

As there are very limited eatable items in the jungle, some of the monkeys, which had stayed in the thick forest in the past months, have started strolling out to the car parks of members of staff and the surrounding areas at the seat of power.

Not only are they coming out in twos and in groups to look for food, their countenance is now full of anger like the popular proverb, “a hungry man is an angry man.”

On Monday last week, a female member of staff was shocked to her marrow when she experienced a situation that showed the present moody nature of monkeys in the Villa.

The member of staff who closed from office around 9:30 that night was holding her handbag in her right hand and food flask and other items in another bag in her left hand as she walked towards the car park.

Her car was parked at the extreme of the car park popularly called ‘Nyanya’ among members of staff.

A little bit of digression here. The car parks were named according to their proximity to the main entrance to the President’s and Vice-President’s offices. The closest car parks to the entrance are the ‘Maitama’ and ‘Asokoro’ parks.

Before the ‘Nyanyan’ car park is a mosque on the right side of the road with a dustbin in front of it.

As the lady walked past the dustbin, two monkeys suddenly sprang up and held the bag on her right hand.

The lady, who did not see the monkeys before then, immediately dropped the bags and ran backwards to the only staff that was coming behind her.

As there was no edible item in the bags, the monkeys left them by the bin and jumped over the wire fence to the forest as the lady and the other staff walked towards the bin.

The lady, who was trembling from the attack, quickly bent down to pick the items scattered on the floor from the bags before rushing to her car.

The other staff had to wait for her to start the car engine and drive off before going back to his car.

State House staff and visitors now have to be on their guard when moving around the area, especially in the night.

It is also hoped that the monkeys will remain calm as the rainy season sets in to make the trees green again in order to produce fruits for their sustenance.